Thinking Straight [Paperback]

Robin Reardon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2008

I know God doesn't make mistakes, and if I'm gay it's because that's what he wanted. What you wanted. And I think the challenge is to get everyone else to see that. This is their test, not mine.

If only Taylor Adams had kept on lying to his parents, none of this would have happened. He wouldn't have been shipped off to Straight to God, an institution devoted to "deprogramming" troubled teenagers and ridding them of their vices--whether it's drugs, violence, or in Taylor's case, other boys. Not that Taylor has a problem with being gay, or with reconciling his love for God with his love for his boyfriend Will...

At Straight to God, such thoughts--along with all other reminders of Taylor's former "sinful" life--are forbidden. Every movement is monitored, privacy is impossible, and no one--from staff to residents--is quite who they first appear to be. There's Charles, Taylor's clean-cut roommate, desperate to leave his past behind...Nate Devlin, a handsome, inscrutable older boy who's alternately arrogant and kind... gorgeous, secretive Sean, who returns to Straight to God each year to avoid doing prison time for drugs. Here, where piety can be a mask for cruelty and the greatest crimes go unpunished, Taylor will learn more than he ever dreamed about love, courage, rebellion, and betrayal--but the most surprising lessons will be the truths he uncovers about himself.

In this smart, insightful new novel, Robin Reardon presents a compelling exploration of the journey from boy to man, and a testament to the strength that comes with accepting both who we are, and who we love...

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Reardon's stirring novel grapples with homosexuality and born-again Christianity. When Taylor Adams comes out, his parents ship him off to Straight to God, a camp for those who have gone astray. The nightmarish camp seeks to exorcise the satanic influence from its charges, some of whom are gay, and some of whom are petty criminals or drug addicts. The camp's strict guidelines include no speaking for newbies (who wear yellow stickers on their clothing), the writing of Moral Inventories to be shared with group leaders, and prayer meetings. Taylor is furious about his incarceration, but through his intellect and open nature, he discovers leadership qualities in himself and learns that not everyone is the religious automaton they appear to be. Reardon's first novel (A Secret Edge) was geared to young adults; this new book, which includes frank language and sexual encounters, tries to reach out to older readers, albeit sometimes awkwardly (the explanation of text message–like acronyms, for instance, is clunky). While the extremes of the evangelical movement are harshly depicted, Reardon does a decent job overall of staying off a soapbox. The result is thoughtful and convincing. (May)
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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Kensington (May 1, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758219288
• ISBN-13: 978-0758219282
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #670,492 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

A number of people have asked me why I write novels about gay teens. It's a good question. If I told you I'd had an answer for them right away, that would be fiction. I had to think about it.

And there is more than one reason. For one thing, I hate injustice. While there are other groups of people I could write about who are treated unjustly, the cognitive disconnect I see around the issue of homosexuality is both fascinating and infuriating to me. Logically, rationally, if you read any current events at all, you see that science is coming up with proof after proof that this orientation is a normal, naturally occurring phenomenon - not just in people, either, but in over 1,500 different animal species. So far! So the disconnect is coming from someplace outside of reason. Outside of reality. Which puts it into fascinating areas, irresistible to an author: psychology, social conditioning, religious extremism - juicy territory.

Teens of any orientation are going through a precarious time of life. Discovering that something very foundational about yourself is different from most other people can make balance much harder. So gay teens seem particularly vulnerable to me.

We've come a long way as a society around gay issues, but not nearly far enough. There's lots more to do, and I want to be a part of that. My next book will be released in October of 2010. Until then, here are some additional resources:

The Case for Acceptance, available as a pdf file from my Web site, in which I use logic and science to demonstrate that the only thing wrong with being gay is how some people treat you when they find out (http://www.robinreardon.com/author/documents/THECASEFORACCEPTANCE_RobinReardon.pdf)
A podcast conversation with Ramble Redhead (http://rambleredhead.com/2009/06/16/episode-290-interview-with-amazing-author-robin-reardon/)

Thank you for reading.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars God doesn't make mistakes, but some well-intentioned Christians do ..., May 26, 2008

By 

Bob Lind "camelwest" (Phoenix, AZ United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

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This review is from: Thinking Straight (Paperback)

Taylor Adams is a gay high school junior, hopelessly in love with his classmate, Will, who feels the same way about him. When a first love seems to be working out so well, it's hard to imagine anything can go wrong, which is likely why Taylor didn't think through his response to his parents, who wondered why he wasn't intersted in continuing to see a girl from their church whom they had set up on a date. Their knee-jerk reaction to his coming out resulted in Taylor being sent away for six weeks of "rehabilitation" at Straight To God, a church-sponsored residential center for "confused" teens and young adults.

Based on his first few days aty Straight To God, Taylor felt his worst fears about the place were true. His roommate, Charles, seemed to be an inflexible, nosey snitch, some of his fellow residents were sullen robots or vindictive bible-thumpers, his caseworker was a stern lady who seemed eager to trip him up to prolong his "sentence," and the chaplain was just plain creepy. But Taylor warmed up to some of the other teens over the next few days, and found a helpful group of like-minded friends who helped each other make it bearable. When he became aware of some relationships that were not at first obvious, and the reasons why some of the older residents voluntarily came back multiple times, the center took on a new interest for Taylor, feeling a responsibility to some of the friends he had made while there.

In this compelling and rather ambitious followup to "A Secret Edge" (which also dealt with a gay teen's first love), Reardon tries to be fair to both the traditional Christian view on homosexuality, and the more liberal (and generally accepted) interpretations of scripture that support the fact that Jesus actually considered homosexuality a non-issue. That transition happens to both the staff and many members of Straight To God during the 300+ pages of the book, making for rather interesting reading, a good lesson for others wanting to be so enlightened, but perhaps more than a bit implausible and contrived to GLBT teens and adults who were past that point. I give it four stars out of five.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book, December 2, 2008

By 

octobercountry (the Land of Trees and Heroes) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Thinking Straight (Paperback)

Just last night I finished Robin Reardon's "Thinking Straight," a most involving story falling under the Young Adult category, though I would recommend it only for teens in the upper age range, due to strong language and sexual situations.

The story is told from the viewpoint of Taylor, a teen who is sent to an institution to be "de-gayed" after he comes out to his parents. I was particularly interested in this story, because I've heard some truly horrendous reports detailing the methods used by these "ex-gay" ministries, and was curious as to how such a programme would be depicted in a work of fiction.

The daily routine of the programme which Taylor is forced to join sounds very much like what I've seen and read about these groups in the past, so it seems that the author really did do her research. The storyline was quite interesting, and it really did make me think about the many viewpoints out there (both religious and secular) which deal with what it means to be gay. There are a lot of shades of grey in this book; the situations discussed are not broadly drawn in black and white. In fact, in the end I did not completely agree with everything the author had to say about faith and homosexuality, but I did feel like I had learned a lot. And I had grown to care about the characters quite a bit as I read.

If there is a drawback to this book, it occurs in the last few chapters, in which the storyline veers wildly into melodrama. Now, what takes place certainly is within the realm of possibility---and surely does make for exciting reading! However, the book up to that point was very realistic and low-key in tone, so the sudden shift was a bit disconcerting. Also, I would say that one aspect of the plot, at the very end, seemed to me to be rather unlikely; however, I can't go into that without providing major spoilers. Still, overall I would classify these as minor problems that did not greatly decrease my overall opinion of the book as a whole.

I liked this one, and highly recommend it with certain qualifications. Those being, the reader should be aware that the book contains a few rather frank scenes with sexual content. And, the reader should probably have a natural interest in theology; a LOT of this book is all about theology! (I found all the discussions on the topic to be extremely interesting, but I realise that some people may have the exact opposite reaction.) The book certainly did draw me in, completely, on an emotional level; these people seemed completely real to me.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thinking Straight: Powerful and Compassionate, May 24, 2008

By 

Robert D. Shull "shullrd" (Fairfield, OH) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Thinking Straight (Paperback)

Robin Reardon has done a wonderful job presenting the story of Taylor a gay teenager whose parents send him to Straight to God to un-confuse his sexuality. The plot line is complex enough to keep your attention throughout, but with a theme that is unmistakable: the only thing wrong with being gay is how others perceive it. The characters are well developed and it was easy to put myself into their shoes. Like a good mystery (or real life), the characters motivations are unclear throughout.

The biggest takeaway for me was that one can have a healthy gay and Christian identity simultaneously. Reardon does a nice job interweaving scripture and progressive Christian thought while also presenting more traditional Christian views. While the protaganist, Taylor, definitely favored the progressive view, I felt Reardon fairly presented the qualms and quandries of traditional Christians.

This is one text that is not to be missed.